Train order stand



Sept. 16, 1947.

H. s. LOEFFLER ET AL TRAIN ORDER STAND Filed June 28, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 QINVENTORS Henry S. Loeffler and Georgevfiuerindr.

ATTORNEYS P 1947- H. s. LO EFFLER El AL 2,427,645

. TRAIN ORDER STAND Filed June 28, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor's Henry $.Loeff1er aml George V. Guerin Jr.

' ornegs S p 6 1947. H. s. LQEFFLER Er AL 2 2 ,645

TRAIN ORDEi? STAND Filed June 28, 1945' 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 fig. 6

lnve ntor's Henry S. L effler and. George V. Guer-in Jr.

Patented Sept. 16, 1947 WED STATES PATENT OFFICE TRAIN ORDER STAND Henry S. Lo'effler and GeorgeV; Guerin, J m, St. Paul, Minn.

Application June 28, 1945', Serial No. 602,000

3 Claims. 1

Our invention relates to train order stands and has for an object to provide a train order stand in which the operating parts may be readily brought into operating position or into retracted position when not desired' for use.

Another object of the invention resides in providing a train order stand comprising an upright standard and an arm pivoted to said standard and adapted to move from an extended position projecting outwardly from said standard and to a retracted position lying along said standard.

Another object of the invention resides in pivoting the arm about a pivot having. a substantially horizontal axis.

Another object of the. invention resides in mounting the train order holder at the end of said arm and in providing. a counterweight for counterbalancing the train order holder and arm.

Another object of the invention resides in providing a train order stand utilizing a support and a mounting for the train order holder yieldably carried by the support and adapted to move in the direction of movement of the train.

Another object of the invention resides in providing the mounting and. support with frictional engaging surfaces and in further providing resilient means for urging said mounting and. support into frictional engagement.

Another object of. the invention resides in pivotally attaching the mounting to the support by means of a bolt and in employing a spring on the bolt for urging the. mounting and support into frictional engagement with one another.

Another object of the invention resides in providing a socket for the reception of the train order holder and in further providing friction means for detachably holding the train order holder in the socket.

Another object of the invention resides in pro viding a train order stand having a plurality of branches each formed with a support and in yieldabl-y mounting on said support corresponding mountings in which train order holders are separately supported.

Other objects of the invention reside in the novel combination and arrangement of partsand in the details of construction hereinafter illustrated and/or described.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a plan View of a train order stand ilustrating an embodiment of our invention applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is an elevational view of the, structure shown in Fig. 1.

Fig; 3' is a plan view of a portion of the struc tureshown in Fig. I and drawn to a greater scale.

Fig. 4- is an elevational view of the structure shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional. View taken on line 55" of Fig. 3'.

Fig. 6 is a View similar to Fig. I of another form of the invention.

Fig. 7 is a view similar to. Fig. 4 of the structure shown in Fig. 5.

In the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, a standard It is employed which comprises two spaced uprights 11' and 12.

These uprights, as. illustrated, are channelshaped in form, being. arranged with their flanges facing one another and in spaced relation to one. another. The uprights H and I2 are welded or otherwise attached to a base I3 which is mounted on a foundation it situated at the right locality with respect to the railroad track. or tracks to service the trains passing thereover. The two uprights H and 12 are secured together near their upper ends by means of a bracket l5 which is welded or riveted to the said" uprights.

Pfvoted' to. the standard It! is an arm l6 which may be tubular in construction. disposedbetween the uprights l! and I2 and is attached. to a. fitting I T. A bolt i8 extends through this fitting and through the webs of the. uprights. H and i2 and serves. as a pintle on which the arm It may swing in a vertical plane- The arm I6 may be moved to a horizontal position, as. shown in full lines in Fig. 2,

' at which locality the same engages the bracket I5 which serves as a stop for limiting the upward movement. of the said arm. Extending rearwardly from the fitting H is an extension i9 which lies in continuation of the arm !6. This extension carries a counterweight 2| by means of which the arm 16 and the mechanism carried thereby may be counterbalanced. Counterweigh-t 2| is attached to arm extension 99 by means. of U-bolts 29 which permit the movement of counterweight. 2!. along arm extension T9 for the purpose of adjusting the balance of arm it and attachments thereto. The space between the uprights H and I2 is sufficient to receive the arm 5, extension 19 and the counterweight 2! therebetween, as well as the attaching mechanism secured to the end of the arm I6. When. the arm is. in retracted position, the same engages a back stop 22 secured to the uprights II and 12 and is held in place by means of a This arm is hasp 23 and a suitable padlock utilized in conjunction therewith.

For use in conjunction with the train order stand, a number of train order holders 24, 24a and 24b are employed which are constructed in accordance with common practice. Since all of the holders are identical in construction, and since the method of supporting the same is similar, only the holder 24 and the supporting structure therefor will be described in detail. The train order holder 24 comprises a shaft 25 from which a fork 26 issues. This fork has prongs 21 and 28 which loosely support a cord 29 to which the train order 3| is secured. When the train passes the train order stand, the train man grasps the order 3|, disengaging the cord from the fork 26 and takes the order and cord with him.

The structure for supporting the train order holder 24 comprises a bracket 32 tubular in form which is welded to the arm l6 and extends outwardly therefrom. This bracket has a plate 33 welded to the top of the same and normally occupying a horizontal position. This plate forms a support which carries a mounting 34. The mounting 34 has a plate-like portion 35 overlying the plate 33. Extending through the bracket 32, the plate 33 and the mounting 34 is a bolt 36. A compression coil spring 31 encircles this bolt and bears at one end against the upper surface of the plate-like portion 35 of the mounting 34. The other end of this spring bears against a washer 38 held in place on said boltv by means of a nut 39 screwed on the end of the same. By proper positioning of the nut 39, the proper degree of friction can be procured between the mounting 34 and the support 33. In this manner, the train order holder is supported for yielding movement in the direction of movement of the oncoming train.

The shaft 25 of the train order holder 24 is re-.

leasably mounted in a socket 4|. This socket is U-shaped in form, being open along the lower side thereof to form a groove indicated by the reference numeral 42. The socket 4| overlies a plate-like member 43 formed on the mounting 34. A bolt 44 extends through the said socket and through this plate-like member is provided with a compression coil spring 45 which encircles the same and which engages the said socket at one end. The other end of said spring engages a washer 46 on the bolt 44 which Washer is held in adjustable position on the said bolt by means of a nut 41. The bolt 44 passes through the socket 4| at a locality toward the inner end thereof. At

this end of the socket is formed a fulcrum 48 which is welded to said socket and which engages the member 43. This fulcrum keeps the forward end 49 of the socket 4| in engagement with the member 43. A guide encircles the socket 4| and guides the said socket for movement toward and from the member 43. The edge -52 of the portion 49 of the socket 4| is flared outwardly, as shown in Fig. 3, to accommodate insertion of th shaft 25 of train order holder 24 into the groove 42 of said socket. The depth of the groove 42 is less than the diameter of the shaft 25, so that the spring 45 acting through the socket 4| operates to force the shaft 25 into frictional engagement with the member 43 and to hold the train order holder in proper position.

For supporting the train order holder 2411, the support therefor is attached to the extreme end 53 of the arm l6. In a similar manner, the support for the train order holder 24b is similarly attached to a bracket 54 welded to the arm l6 and occupies the position shown in Fig. 2. It will be noted that the various train order holders held by the respective supports are held in different elevations so that they are readily distinguishable and that each train order holder is independently supported for yielding movement.

In Figs. 6 and '7, We have shown a portable device which consists of a single standard 6 This standard is carried by a tripod 62. A plate 63 is welded to the standard 6| at the lowermost portion of the same, While a plate 64 is welded to the standard 6| at the uppermost portion of the same. With this form of the invention, two train order holders II and 12 are employed, one being carried by the plat 63 and the other by the plate 64. Since these train order holders and their supports are the same as those shown in Figs. 1 to 5, the description thereof will not be repeated, and only the structure associated with plate 64 will be described in detail. The holder 1| overlies a plate 65 which is welded to a transverse plate 66 which, in turn, overlies the plate 64. A bolt 6'! extends through the plate 66 and the plate 64 and pivots the former for movement relative to the latter. A thumb screw 68 passes through the plate 66 and. also through an arcuate slot 69 in the plate 64. The holder 12 is pivotally secured to the plate 65 by means of a construction identical with that shown in the other form of the invention. It will be seen that this form of the invention is the same as that shown in Figs. 3 and 4, except that a portable stand is provided whereby the device may be brought out and used Whenever the occasion requires the use of the same. When it becomes desirable to retract the holder shown in Fig. 6, the tripod 62 may be collapsed in the same manner as is customary with an ordinary tripod. At the same time, the thumb screw 68 is removed and the supports for the train holders tilted downwardly to substantial alignment with the standard 6|.

The advantages of our invention are manifest. The device can be constructed at a nominal expense and serves the desired purpose. By means of the arm employed, the device may be swung out of the way when not in use, and may be locked in position along the standard. By means of the construction for attaching the holders to the arm, the holders may be swung in the direction of movement of the train. This is accomplished by the swinging of the holders about the pivots between the mounting and the support. In the event that th operator, in removing the train order, should miss the train order and engage the train order holder instead of the train order, the support for the train order holder would yield and injury to the person of the operator would be prevented. With our invention, a separate supporting device for each holder is provided, whereby a plurality of holders may be employed. These holders may be detachably mounted on the supports and when not desired for use, may be removed therefrom. With our invention, the customary holders may be employed and the same quickly and effectively attached to the supports on the supporting arm. In the form of the invention shown in Figs, 1 and 2, the attachment of the holders is conveniently accomplished by pulling the outer end of arm |6 downward until the sockets 4| are within reach of the operator. After the holder or holders are inserted, the arm is released, whereupon the counterweight 2| raises the arm |6 to an approximately horizontal position ready for delivery of train orders.

Changes in the specific form of our invention, as herein described, may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of our invention.

Having described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In a train order stand for supporting a holder having a handle, a plate-like mounting, a U-shaped socket open along a portion of its length and having free edges along the open portion of the same and facing said plate-like mounting to form a groove therebetween for the reception of said handle, an end member secured to the innermost end of said socket and extending beyond the free edges of said socket, said end member engaging the outer surface of said mounting and forming a. fulcrum for said socket, a bolt extending through said plate-like mounting and through said socket, a spring acting between said bolt and socket and urging said socket toward said mounting, and a guide encircling said socket and attached to said mounting, said guide guiding the socket for movement toward and from the mounting, said guide and bolt holding said socket from lateral movement independently of said fulcrum.

2. A train order holder supporting device for use in connection with the transverse arm of a train order stand, comprising a fiat bar adapted to be carried by the transverse arm, and a socket member coacting with said bar to yieldingly receive and releasably retain one end of the shaft of a train order holder, said socket member being substantially trough shaped and having its open side facing said bar, and means hingedly and yieldingly connecting the trough to the bar to allow limited swinging movement of the socket toward or away from the bar to permit insertion or removal of the train order holder shaft, said yielding means including a spring pressed bolt extending through the trough and bar, and said hinged means consisting of a down turned end portion on the trough engaging said bar and serving as a fulcrum in the swinging movement of the socket with reference to the bar, and means spaced apart lengthwise from said fulcrum and from said bolt coacting with the bar and socket for limiting the swinging movement of the socket with reference to the bar.

3. A train order holder supporting device as defined in claim 2, wherein the bar is yieldingly mounted with reference to the transverse arm.

HENRY S. LOEEFLE-R. GEORGE V. GUERIN, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 758,830 Finch May 3, 1904 935,632 Allen Oct. 5, 1909 1,009,509 Hansen Nov. 21, 1911 1,305,994 Davis June 10, 1919 1,857,110 Lundy May 3, 1932 2,317,633 North Apr. 27, 1943 

